NTPC awards Rs 31,400-cr contract for Talaipalli coal mines to Thriveni Earthmovers: Source

• The contract for the Talaipalli coal mine in Chhattisgarh was awarded by NTPC to BGR Mining & Infra earlier but was cancelled

• The Talaipalli coal mine has a capacity of 18 million tonnes per annum and the coal is used at NTPC's 4,000 MW Lara Power Project for power generation

New Delhi: Coimbatore-based Thriveni Earthmovers has won a Rs 31,428-crore contract from NTPC Limited for developing and operating its Talaipalli coal mines in Chhattisgarh, a source who spoke to PSU Watch on the condition of anonymity said. This would be the second contract bagged by the company from NTPC after another mine and development operation contract won in August. The contract for the Talaipalli coal mine in Chhattisgarh was awarded by NTPC to BGR Mining & Infra earlier, along with the contract for the development and operation of another mine. 

However, the two contracts were cancelled in July by NTPC after corruption allegations surfaced against senior official of the private mining company. Apart from Talaipalli, the other mine for which the contract was awarded was Chatti-Bariatu coal mine in Jharkhand.

Talaipalli and Chatti-Bariatu coal mines

The Ministry of Power PSU had awarded the mine and development contract of the Chatti-Bariatu mine in Jharkhand to BGR in November 2017. In the same month, it had awarded a similar contract for the Chhatisgarh-based Talaipalli mine to a consortium of NCC Ltd and BGR Mining. While the Chatti-Bariatu mine has a capacity to produce 7 million tonnes of coal a year for use at NTPC's 1,320 MW Barh power plant for generation of electricity, the Talaipalli coal mine has a capacity of 18 million tonnes per annum for use at NTPC's 4,000 MW Lara Power Project. The coal mine was allocated to NTPC in 2015.

Also read: NTPC looks to provide round-the-clock power to customers, signs pact with Greenko

Thriveni Earthmovers specialises in mining natural resource commodities like iron ore, copper, coal, bauxite, among others. The company claims to be one of the leading Mine Developer and Operator (MDO) globally.

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